After Easter - then what?

Taking a break from the "Choices for Lent" series, I want to invite us all to reflect on what comes after Easter. The death and resurrection of Jesus was the awesomely loving response of God to his erring children, we have renewed life because Jesus removed all barriers to God at the moment the 'veil of the temple was rent asunder!'
As essential as this was to God's plan for his Kingdom, what ultimately decides the issue is how christians respond to the cross and the empty tomb! Jesus said quite emphatically, 'As the Father sent me, so I send you!' 'Go into all the world to preach, teach and baptise.' 'You will be my witnesses to the ends of the earth!' It can't be any clearer than that - if we call ourselves disciples of Jesus, then we are called to be a witness to the Good News everywhere we go and in everything we do. Every other part of our church life and journey is secondary, and yet it seems to me that we have made 'church life' our top priority in order to avoid being disciples!
On the cross Jesus gave his all, absolutely, we are called to do the same. We all know and can recite John 3:16, but take a moment to read 1John 3:16 - the completion of the story!
Easter is only joy when God's love overflows our hearts and is shared with others at every opportunity in our daily lives, and oh what joy it is! I am convinced that one of the main reasons many people do not come or stop coming to church is because they do not find the joy! And joy is profoundly life-giving; it is way beyond mere happiness which most people settle for - it caused Paul to sing hymns in prison before he was to die!
Take a moment to focus on the joy of Easter. Who do you know who shines with that joy? Is your heart filled with the joy of Christ-risen-from-the-dead-giving-you-new-life? My Easter prayer for each of us is that we will open our hearts as never before to receive the spirit of the risen Christ.

"Joy to the world, He is risen, hallelujah!"

Choices of Lent - Choosing Community Over Isolation

One of the most dangerous trends in our modern society (in my opinion), is the extreme individualism that has largely separated us from each other. For example, if you see 4 teens together today (or adults for that matter), they are not talking to each other; each has their cell phone out text messaging a faceless person somewhere else, and the same is true for our whole society. More than once I have observed a couple at a restaurant for a meal who spend the entire meal on their cell phones to other people! Email, IM's, voicemail, the whole bit. I know people who purposely call someone when they know they will not be there so they can leave a voice message rather than actually speak to them! And the automated voices directing us through an automated maze that too often does not include the option of actually talking to someone, not fun! Fewer and fewer people make real contact with other people any more, and we miss it and are lonely without it. And the on-line dating thing may have a place but not as the main or only way to meet people! Sadly, I have to say, this isolation is happening in many churches!

The very foundation of life is a network of meaningful one-on-one growing, personal, intimate relationships; husband and wife, parent and child, student and teacher, friend with friend, even employer and employee (wouldn't that be great!)

Of course, nowhere is community more crucial than in the church, the Body of Christ; because the essence of the Christian faith is a personal intimate conversation in which one person is sharing with another the love of Jesus who is life, and how it has enriched their own life. Because Jesus is life, forgiven, renewed, abundant, joyful life! You may want to pause here and read Ephesians 2:19-22 in the bible, but come straight back! The season of Lent is about journeying to the cross and beyond to the resurrection of Jesus, in order to find that life.

The church is called into existence to be the Body of Christ, a welcoming, meaningful, accepting, joyful, inspirational community. That's my choice, I pray it is yours.

If it is, find such a church and become part of the community, and take a friend with you! Or you may need to help your own church rediscover the joy of true community.

I look forward to your response and ideas.

Shalom, Pastor Greg